Orthopedic shoe



June 1, 1943. I SABEL ETAL 2,320,800

ORTHOPE'DIC SHOE Filed Aug. 2. 1949 1 11 U617 for army Patented June 1, 1943 ORTHOPEDIG SHGE- Isadore Sahel, West Philadelphia, Pa and Laurie S. Macdonald, Brockton, Mass.

Application August 2, 1940, Serial: No..349 ,689-

1 Claim.

This invention relates to orthopedic shoes and more especially to shoes of the brace type.

Certain deformities of the limbs, not only congenital but those acquired through diseases, such as infantile paralysis, requiretheuseof shoes to which are attached metallic braces strapped to the legs below the knees and pivoted at the ankles to metallic stirrups rigidly attached to the shoe bottoms so that the foot encased in the shoe is kept in a perfectly straight position with no possibility of lateral motion. According to usual practice the stirrup is formed out of a piece of steel of somewhat U-shape extending across the outside of the sole of the shoe under the heel just rearwardly of the breast line and thence extending upwardly at the sides of the shoe. The stirrup is secured to the shoe by being fastened in place by rivets which pass throughthe stirrup upwardly through the outer and inner soles and thence through steel plates assembled i the shoe and seated on the upper face of the inner sole. In this way-the inner and outer soles are clamped between the stirrup and steel plate which in theory are supposed to hold the stirrup on the shoe so that there may be no relative motion thereof.

We have found that in practice constructions such as those described above not only fail to give the desired rigidity of construction but in use are highly unsatisfactory from hygienic viewpoints, as well as failing to give comfort to the wearer. The defects are partly due to the fact that the use of an internal plate in the shoe makes it hard, if not impossible, to secure a sock lining in place, as the latter will not stick to the metal and usually curls up, making the shoe not only uncomfortable but exposing the steel plate which rusts from the effects of perspiration, with danger of infection of the foot. Furthermore, as these shoes are usually provided with shank stiffeners, the weight of the shoe as a whole becomes excessive with tiring effect on the wearer.

The more general object of the present invention is to bring about a shoe of the brace type, wherein the stirrup is more securely anchored than has heretofore been possible.

A further object of the invention is to bring about a form of shoe of the above type wherein the stirrup is not only efiiciently attached thereto but wherein the use of interior plates is avoided so that a leather sock lining or the like may be cemented or otherwise permanently attached to the shoe.

A still further object of the invention is to bring about a shoehaving the above characteristics wherein the weight is greatly reduced over those previously in use;

To these and other ends the invention resides in the novel features and combinations of parts to behereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the drawing,- a

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a shoe in accordancewiththe invention showingthe braces attached thereto Fig. 2 is a bottom View of the shoe shown in Fig.- 1; a

Fig. 3 is an end View of-theshoe shown in Fig.=-1; 1

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the shoe of Fig '1 taken along the'line 4-4 of Fig. 5 and-greatly enlarged as respects Fig. I;

Fig. 5 is a view of-the bottom of theshoe shown in Fig.4 but broken away to show the internal constructionsand 1 V Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view" along line 6-6 of Fig.4.

Referring now to the drawing, in which the invention is illustrated by showing our'preferred form of the same, the reference numeral I0 indicates, in general, the improved shoe, which in this instance is of the welt type, specifically a Goodyear welt, and includes an outer sole II attached by the usual stitching I2 to the Welt l3, the latter being sewed at the inseam in usual manner to the upper l4 and lip of the inner sole l5. The method of attachment of the outer and inner soles to one another and to the shoe upper may be varied within the invention as will be 1 understood by one skilled in the art.

The stirrup, generally designated by the reference numeral I6, is generally of U-shape and includes two substantially parallel upwardly extending branches I1 and I8 joined together at their lower ends by the integrally formed bottom piece or connector l9 which is applied directly to the shoe bottom on the external face of the outersole, just rearwardly of the breast line 20, of the heel 2|. The stirrup is made out of flat steel stock and in this instance is provided With a forward extension 22 of triangular shape spaced equally from the heel breast corners and terminating at a point on the medial line of the shoe bottom somewhat forwardly of the heel breast line.

The stirrup is secured on the shoe by rivets 23, in this instance three rivets being shown, two of which are spaced transversely of the shoe along the center line of the stirrup, the third being at the forward end of the extension 22. The rivets 23 are provided with flat heads and pass downwardly through the inner sole [5, the plate 24 (to be hereinafter fully described), the outersole I l and the stirrup I6, the outer ends of the rivets being upset to secure the whole rigidly and tightly together. The heel 25 is recessed to fit over the stirrup and is secured in the shoe in usual manner.

The plate 24 replaces the usual shank stiffener and is preferably made of relatively hard steel, in practice as hard as may be conveniently drilled for the rivets 23, and extends lengthwise of the shoe from the ball line 26 to the inturned lower edge of the upper at the back of the heel, as at 21, and transversely of the shoe right up to the seam line or lip 28 of the inner sole I5, the

inturned portions of the upper and tacks at theheel being kept as far back as possible in maintaining good shoe making and the plate extending at the heel to the edges of the upper. Forwardly of the plate 24 the usual cork or other filler 29 is used but rearwardly of the ball line the use of the filler is avoided, the plate in itself acting as a filler.

It will be noted that the plate 24 is rigidly clamped between the inner and outer soles, by the rivets 23 and the stirrup l6, and as the plate extends transversely and longitudinally over a wide area of the shoe bottom a considerable degree of lateral, as well as longitudinal, stability is effected, with the result that lateral motion or other motion of the shoe bottom with respect to the stirrup is prevented. Not only is greater rigidity of construction thus effected but inasmuch as the use of an internal plate is avoided it is possible to cement or otherwise attach a cork cushion 30 to the inner sole and a leather sock lining 3| may be cemented on top of the cushion without danger that either may become detached, the small area occupied by the heads of the rivets being insufiicient to interfere with the attachment directly to the inner sole. 1

Inasmuch as the plate 24 extends transversely of the shoe into close proximity to the point where the outer sole is attached to the inner sole, it will be apparent that the same becomes substantially an integral part of the shoe structure and is held rigidly against relative movement. The use of the extension 22 enables us to secure the stirrup to the bottom of the shoe at greatly spaced points without unduly adding to the weight of the stirrup.

We do not show herein the braces which are attached to the stirrup nor the straps which are attached to the braces, as these may be of any usual or preferred type. It will be noted that the upper ends of the stirrup are bored at 32 to receive the rivets or other means which attach the braces to the stirrup for relative pivotal movement.

While we have shown and described a preferred embodiment of our invention it is to be understood that the same is not to be limited to the precise details shown but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claim.

What we claim is:

A brace shoe of the Goodyear welt type having an upper and an outer sole extending to the heel end of the shoe, an inner sole, a welt, and a reenforcing metal plate disposed between the outer and inner sole and extending rearwardly from substantially the ball line of the shoe to at least beyond the midpoint of the heel thereof, said reenforcing plate extending transversely of the shoe substantially from the inseam on one side to substantially the inseam on the other side, said reenforcing plate comprising a onepiece hardened thin metal plate, a stirrup and fastening means extending through the inner sole, plate, outer sole and stirrup for securing the same rigidly together.

ISADORE SABEL. LAURIE S. MACDONALD. 

